Now I know this is a VERY controversial topic. We've been hearing about this ban on "slaughtering" horses in the US for the past 5 years or so and it's hard, emotionally and mentally, to find what side of the proverbial fence you are going to stand on.
But lets make sure we have at least a majority of our facts and feelings straight before the decision is made. First of all, there has always been horse slaughter in the US. This wasn't something that Obama just created and implemented all in the last few months. The difference is, these plants can now be considered harvesting plants because the horse meat will now be inspected and approved for human consumption. Before, the horse meat was just used to go into dog and cat food and wasted. In addition to the meat being inspected, having harvesting plants within the US ensures that the horses will be treated respectfully and humanely before and during the process which was impossible to ensure when we were shipping these hundreds of thousands of horses to Mexico and Canada.
Why, you ask, is there even a need for these plants? Well, horses are iconic, they are the American dream. They are what every little girls wants when she's 5 years old and every little boys imagines riding as he's conquering the wild west. People, unfortunately, are under the impression that horses just eat grass and can stand outside all day therefor the only real cost is purchasing them. This is so far from the truth it hurts. As many know there are routine vet bills, farrier bills, grain bills and more. And in this time of economic downfall, these family pets are being abandoned, given away, left to founder and fester with worms and other common equine diseases that if not prevented are easily contracted. Most neighbors wont stand for this inhumane treatment and they call someone. But where do the horses go after that? Well, while the bill was in place that banned slaughter in the US these horses were being loaded up in semis, shipped across the borders and then only God knows what.
In addition to the humane aspect, we also have to consider the fact that our global population is on the rise with no end in sight. Although the cattle, chicken and pork industries are doing everything they can to produce as much healthy, nutritious and safe meat as possible because that's what Americans and many Asians and Europeans prefer, there are plenty of starving people around the globe that would love this alternative. Besides the fact that it's considered a delicacy in many countries across the pond, we have to be realistic. If we are already harvesting this meat, why not take the extra step to inspect it, stamp it, export it and help millions of people beat starvation.
Like I said, I know this is a hard battle. I have been a horse lover since I was a little tiny girl, I have been riding since I was 3 1/2 yrs old, I went to college to ride. I've had the same horse since I was 15 and he is the love of my life. I have done a lot of soul searching on this but to know that if an old horse or even a young horse can be used to save the children above ... I'd be proud of that. There are a lot of crummy people out there and very few crummy horses. Those are the circumstances we are in and its unfortunate for the horses. But making them suffer because we're too attached emotionally to let them go is more damaging then letting them go peacefully and humanely. Just think about it.
